Sky Without the Sun
by rocknrollpunksoul
Summary: This chapter is really bad. I do not like this story anymore..lol I may rewrite it, but here is the 4th chapter anyway since someone wanted me to post it. Hope you enjoy it!
1. Default Chapter

It had been two months since Karen had left. She had told Jack, Grace, and Will that she had to take care of some legal issues that her late husband Stan had left behind. Then she disappeared. Not even Will, her lawyer, knew her whereabouts. Grace had since found a new team of designers to work with and hadn't really noticed Karen's absence. Not that she didn't miss her, but she wasn't losing any sleep, or business. Will was also kept busy. He was a work-aholic and had been enjoying indulging himself completely in his cases. That left Jack. Jack had done some theatre work right after Karen left, but they were currently on hiatus and he didn't feel like looking for anything else. At first he had filled his time clubbing and being the center of the social scene, but that had worn off rather quickly and now he just stayed in his apartment. Karen was his best friend, and he had noticed that right before she left they had grown closer than ever before. Instead of meaningless shopping trips and extravagant lunches, he and Karen had had picnics in Central park and stayed up late watching chick-flicks together at her place. As he reminisced about his and Karen's adventures, he thought about how un Karen-like it all was, but how she had seemed so happy and full of new ideas for them to try. Now, as he sat alone beside the window in his living room, Jack noticed how dull the usually bright lights of New York City seemed. Without Karen there was no Jack. He had lost his glow when he realized he might never hear from her again, two weeks after she had left; he had turned sullen and rarely even laughed. And the twinkle in his sparkling blue eyes had faded. Will and Grace had noticed this and commented, but Jack just brushed them off saying he was tired that day. After that they didn't see much of him. Busy with their own lives, they figured he was just as busy with his, and went on. Little did anyone know, Karen had been the reason for Jack's constant euphoric attitude and flamboyancy. And he had not even realized it until she disappeared.   
  
Sighing, Jack got up from his chair and walked over to the stereo. Shuffling through his CDs he could find nothing that he thought might cheer him up, not even Cher. So he turned on the radio instead. As he walked back over to the window he heard the last few bars of a rock song play, then the DJ came on.   
  
"Here's a new one by Daniel Beddingfield, "Never Gonna Leave Your Side" here on Q102.3."  
  
Jack perked up some at the name of the artist and listened as the song played.  
  
I feel like a song without the words  
  
A man without a soul  
  
A bird without its wings  
  
A heart without a home  
  
I feel like a knight without a sword  
  
The sky without the sun  
  
cause you are the one  
  
I feel like a ship beneath the waves  
  
A child that lost its way  
  
A door without a key  
  
A face without a name  
  
I feel like a breath without the air  
  
And every day's the same  
  
since you've gone away  
  
I gotta have a reason to wake up in the morning  
  
You used to be the one that put a smile on my face  
  
There are no words that could describe how I miss you  
  
and I miss you everyday  
  
yeah  
  
and I'm never gonna leave your side  
  
and I'm never gonna leave your side again  
  
still holding longer  
  
I won't let you go  
  
cause when I'm lying in your arms  
  
I know im home  
  
They tell me that a man can lose his mind  
  
Living in the pain  
  
The call in times gone by  
  
The crying in the rain  
  
You know ive wasted half the time  
  
And i'm on my knees again  
  
till you come to me  
  
yeah  
  
I gotta have a reason to wake up in the morning  
  
You used to be the one that put a smile on my face  
  
There are no words that could describe how I miss you  
  
and I miss you everyday  
  
yeah  
  
and I'm never gonna leave your side  
  
and I'm never gonna leave your side again  
  
still holding on girl  
  
I won't let you go  
  
I lay my head against your heart  
  
I know im home  
  
I know im home  
  
I know im home  
  
and I'm never gonna leave your side  
  
and I'm never gonna leave your side again  
  
still holding longer  
  
I won't let you go  
  
cause when im lying in your arms  
  
i know im home  
  
As the song ended Jack wiped away the tears that he hadn't realized he'd cried. He had gotten lost in the song and now he just felt worse. 


	2. Just Jack, Always Jack

Ok, I know this isn't much, but more is on the way. Hope you like this. Also, I'd like feedback on where you want this to go. I'm not sure where I'm going with it yet. So I'm open to suggestions Enjoy!  
  
~~~~~~  
The next day Jack got up and took a shower as usual. The night before he had fallen  
asleep on his couch watching an old movie. Looking at the time, Jack figured he could get ready  
and go to Will's office for a while. For some reason, today he didn't feel like moping around.  
  
~Will's Office~  
  
"Connie, can you bring me those files, please?" Will Truman asked his secretary.  
"Right away. Oh, and Will, Jack is here to see you," came Connie's reply over the intercom.  
"Jack!" Will thought."I haven't seen him in forever!"  
"Send him in, Connie."  
  
A few seconds later Jack walked into the room, a slight bounce in his step. Will smiled and went over to greet him.  
"How are you?" he asked as they embraced briefly.  
"I'm doing okay," Jack responded when they pulled back. Will was glad to see that he was also smiling.  
"What brings you here? Will asked as he sat back down behind his deck and motioned for Jack to take a seat. "Grace and I haven't seen very much of you lately."  
"I know," Jack replied. "I..I haven't felt like being around anyone much since..you know." Will gave his friend a confused look. "Since what? Oh." Jack nodded and they were silent for a while.  
"I'm not "Jack" without her, okay?" Jack suddenly blurted out without emotion. Will studied his friend's face carefully before replying. "What makes you think that?" he questioned, his voice soft. Jack shrugged. "You've seen me. I'm not myself! Since she's been gone I haven't found joy in anything I used to do. And I mean anything, Will." Will nodded and smiled.  
"Jack," he began, getting up from his chair, "You were "Jack" before we met. You've been "Jack" as long as I've known you, and with or without Karen, you are the one and only Jack McFarland," Will finished from where he had knelt in front of Jack's chair. "She's coming back." At this Jack's heart skipped a beat and he grabbed Will's hands.  
"You know where she is?!" he screeched. As Will stood up he realized he may have said too much. He sat up on the edge of his desk and thought about his response.  
"Well do you?!" came Jack's "head-voice" cry.  
"Yes and no," Will answered.  
"What do you mean?" Jack asked, his voice normal now. Will sighed. "I guess you need to find out sometime. C'mon Jack, let's go for a walk." 


	3. Perfect Sense

Here's the 3rd chapter! Yay! Hope those of you who were waiting for it enjoy! I haven't said this before, but I don't own anything or anyone. Wouldn't it be nice though? ^_^ And I know nothing about New York or where these characters live, so if I get something geographically out of place, you can correct me. Enough of that, now go read!  
  
~~~~  
Will was silent as he and Jack exited the building. Once out on the sidewalk, the noises of the city filled that silence a little and Will was glad. The two started to walk down the street towards a small park a few blocks away that Will often visited. He knew it would not be crowded nor distracting. As they walked, Will looked over to his left at Jack. He reminded him of a lost puppy. Looking straight ahead again, Will reached over and gently took Jack's hand, entwining their fingers and closing some of the distance between them. Jack smiled a little. He knew it was unlike Will to do something like that, but he was grateful for the contact.  
  
They soon reached the park and Will knew he would have to speak. His mind still racing, he tried to think of how and what  
  
he was going to tell Jack.  
  
Jack's mind was also racing. *He said she was coming back, right? But when?! And why did she leave?! Things were going so great! Or were they? Did I say something wrong?....*  
  
The sound of Will's voice brought Jack out of his reverie. "Do you want to sit here?" he asked, gesturing to a bench that was a few feet off the path. Jack nodded and they went over to it and sat down.  
  
Figuring it was best to just begin, Will looked deep into Jack's eyes and took a breath. Jack braced himself for what he was about to hear, his imagination running wild.  
  
"This is hard for me to tell you," Will began, "because it doesn't make much sense in the first place." Jack gave Will a confused look, but silently urged him to keep going. Will nodded.  
  
"Right before Karen left, she pulled me aside and told me she was going...." Will paused, thinking of how ridiculous this was going to sound and smiling slightly. Seeing that Jack was about to burst, he continued quickly. "..'to find herself'." Will braced himself for Jack's reaction and tried, for the millionth time since Karen left, to make the reason sound rational.  
  
"What?" Jack questioned dryly.  
  
Will sighed. "I don't know, Jackie, but that's what she said. She told me she had some things to work out, and for me to tell anyone that asked, that they had to do with some affairs that Stan left behind." Will took a breath. "She didn't specify on what they were really about..the things...but she was adamant that she was leaving to find..." Will couldn't finish. Jack's expression melted his heart completely. He looked totally lost, and not to mention confused. They were silent for a moment.  
  
"Okay," Jack finally said, emotionless. "That made perfect sense. In some sort of alternate universe that is my life, what you said makes sense. Why? Because nothing in my life ever works out right. Why should this?" He stared at the ground in front of him and tried to control his emotions. "Are you sure she didn't say anything else? Do you know where she went, or when she's coming back?" Jack choked back a sob at the end of his last sentence, determined not to feel anything just yet. He was failing.  
  
Will sighed and scooted closer to Jack, placing his hand on his back. "No, I don't know where she went. Honestly, I don't think she knew either, when she told me." This scared Jack. *Was Karen out there all alone? What was she thinking just leaving?*  
  
"Will, why didn't she tell me?" Jack asked, turning to look at Will. Will saw that Jack's eyes were brimming with tears that threatened to fall at any moment. He hugged him closer and tried to think of what to say.  
  
"I really don't know, Jackie," Will finally answered, his voice almost a whisper.  
  
When Jack regained some composure, his mind began filling with questions once again.  
  
"Will, it has been two months since she left," he said, his voice even, "and I'm just now finding out the reason. And now that I do know, I'm still as lost as I was before. This makes no sense, Will!," Jack's voice suddenly filling with emotion. "I have lost my best friend and I don't even understand why!" He started to say more, but he was shaken by uncontrollable sobs. He rested his elbows on his knees and put his face in his hands.  
  
"Hey, calm down some, Jackie," Will soothed, rubbing Jack's back and massaging his neck.  
  
Jack shook his head and wiped his eyes with his sleeve, then looked up at Will, with tears glistening in his ocean blue  
  
eyes, and said, "You don't understand, Will, I love her."  
  
Will's eyes widened in surprise, not at just at what his best friend had admitted, but at the way he had said it. At that  
  
moment Will saw something flash in Jack's eyes and it was like a mirror into his soul. Will suddenly understood why Jack had been  
  
so down since Karen had left; he understood why he had not questioned her whereabouts until now, and most of all, Will now  
  
realized that he had to do everything in his power to get Karen back. 


	4. Karen's Story

She lie awake in bed that morning. The sun came pouring through the open window and a salty breeze blew the curtains. It was just like it had been every other morning.  
  
"Such a beautiful place," she thought, "but without someone to share it with, it means nothing."  
  
Turning over, she looked at the small clock on the nightstand and saw that it was a little after nine a.m. She sighed and gazed up at the white ceiling, then let her eyes close as her body drifted back into sleep.  
  
A little later, feeling the hot sun on her bare back, she sat up in bed and thought about the day ahead of her. Although she was refreshed from sleeping peacefully, her mind was tired. She had no idea why she had run. She felt just as alone there as she did back in New York.  
  
"New York," she thought. "Is it better now that I'm not there?"  
  
She got out of bed, then, and walked in to the bathroom to brush her teeth. As she stared at herself in the mirror, she noticed how she had changed. Her eyes were no longer puffy, her skin had a slightly tan tone to it now, and her hair had grown longer. She liked the changes she saw, and smiled. Coming out of the bathroom, she heard a knock at the door.  
  
"It's open," she called, knowing who it was.  
  
"Are you coming to breakfast?" the familiar voice asked. It was only ten thirty.  
  
"Just let me change clothes. You can wait up here if you want. I won't be a second."  
  
When she came out of the bathroom again, she was wearing a light blue top, tan Capri-like pants, and sandals.  
  
"C'mon, Rosie, let's go to breakfast," she said, offering a smile to her companion. The smile was returned and the pair walked downstairs.  
  
Over breakfast, the two women talked casually. Karen had brought Rosario with her when she ran away, intending to keep her as her maid. But when they had been away for a few weeks, Karen decided to let Rosario enjoy herself without the responsibilities.  
  
*flashback*  
  
"Rosie, come here a minute," Karen called out from her seat on the balcony. Rosario, dressed in her maid's uniform and donning her signature sunglasses, went out to where Karen was.  
  
"What do you think about not having to be my maid anymore?" Karen asked when Rosario appeared at her side.  
"I think I would be out of a job," she replied. Karen gave a small laugh. "No, honey, I would take care of you financially still, but you wouldn't have to take care of me...at least not while we are here."  
"But this job is all I have known for the past 18 years!" Rosario exclaimed, clearly confused by Karen's action.  
"You can take it easy now, though, Rosie," Karen told her, leaning back into her chair and looking out at the view.  
"Whatever you say, Miss Karen," Rosario replied warily, turning to go inside.  
"And drop the "Miss". Karen said after her, "Makes me feel old. Ick."  
  
Rosario went back inside, thinking about the conversation she had just had, and how much had changed since they had run away. Karen had become easier to work with, though at first she noticed that it was a strain to not yell at everyone. Rosario had admired Karen's effort, but wondered how long it would last. If this had happened back in New York, Rosario would have blamed it on the alcohol and went back to her dusting, but since they had been here, she had not seen Karen with anything alcoholic. No martini glass, no bottle of Bourbon in her purse, not even wine with dinner. But Rosario kept her mouth shut, even when she saw a waste can full of empty pill bottles in the bathroom. Upon further investigation, she found residue in the sink of the once-colorful pills. 


End file.
